Definition

1. Noun:
   • A speech sound produced by completely blocking the airflow in the vocal tract and then releasing it suddenly: A plosive is a type of consonant, also known as a stop, characterized by a complete closure at some point in the mouth, building up air pressure, and then a quick release.

Usage

• Plosives are fundamental sounds in many languages. In English, the sounds represented by the letters p, b, t, d, k, and g are plosives.
• The term is used in phonetics and linguistics to classify and describe speech sounds.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The words "pat," "bat," and "cat" all begin with a plosive consonant.
  • In phonetics class, we learned to identify the place of articulation for each plosive.
  • The plosives /p/ and /b/ are both bilabial, meaning they are made with both lips.

Advanced Usage

• "Voiced plosive": A plosive sound where the vocal cords vibrate during the closure (e.g., /b/, /d/, /g/).
  • The initial sound in "dog" is a voiced alveolar plosive.
• "Voiceless plosive": A plosive sound produced without vocal cord vibration (e.g., /p/, /t/, /k/).
  • The /k/ in "key" is a voiceless velar plosive.
• "Aspirated plosive": A plosive followed by a strong puff of air, as in the /p/ in "pin" (in many English dialects).
  • In English, voiceless plosives are often aspirated at the beginning of a stressed syllable.

Variants and Related Words

• Stop (n): A common synonym for "plosive" in phonetics.
  • The terms "plosive" and "stop" are often used interchangeably.
• Plosive (adj): Pertaining to or characteristic of a plosive sound. (Note: This adjectival use is less common than the noun form).
  • The plosive quality of the sound was very clear in the recording.

Synonyms

• Stop consonant: The most direct synonym.
• Occlusive: A broader phonetic term that includes plosives and also nasals, where the airflow is blocked but released through the nose.

Related Phrases / Terms

• "Plosive release": The moment when the built-up air is let out after the closure.
  • The acoustic cue for a plosive is often found in the burst of the plosive release.
• "Bilabial plosive": A plosive made with both lips (e.g., /p/, /b/).
• "Alveolar plosive": A plosive made with the tongue against the alveolar ridge (e.g., /t/, /d/).
• "Velar plosive": A plosive made with the back of the tongue against the soft palate (e.g., /k/, /g/).

Noun

1. a consonant produced by stopping the flow of air at some point and suddenly releasing it
   • his stop consonants are too aspirated